Deely Boppers

Deely Boppers were those naff things you put on your head that consisted of a plastic headband with two springy 'antlers' on. Each 'antler' had coloured sparkly balls, bits of fluff or some other kitsch / tacky object on top and the antlers were sprung so that they wobbled about.

Apparently they were invented by an American who was inspired by the “Killer Bees” costumes on Saturday Night Live. Being an entrepreneurial sort of fellow, he knocked up his first batch of Deely Boppers in 1981, which his wife named incidentally, and took them to a street fair in Los Angeles where they sold like hot cakes. After selling the idea to the Ace Novelty Co. In Washington, production was ramped up and within a year of the initial launch sales were estimated at 2 million.

I don't really know whether Deely Boppers were classed as a fashion accessory or as a toy. In fact I still haven't worked out why anyone would wear them at all but for some reason Deely Boppers were very popular when they first came out and are still worn today by drunken people at parties.

Do You Remember Deely Boppers?

Do You Remember Deely Boppers?

I remember being in the midst of the 80's craze, constantly nagging at my mum to get me the ones with balls but she could never find any.
However,after being tipped off, my mum found a shop and while I never got the Deely boppers I wanted, I was more than happy to settle for windmill ones as I was finally 'bang on trend!'
I thought I was something special as I strutted out of the shop, through town and finally to the bus stop with my new headgear!

We called deely boppers 'happy bobbers' round where I lived. I too remember these things being abundant at fair grounds, and thanks DYR for reminding me of those see-through hair bands. I remember having one, though it was really uncomfortable over my nose and always lay in the wrong place to see through it properly!

My mum's cousin stayed with us, with her two kids, and we bought them each a pair at the park. Her 4 year old son chose ones that were gold sparkly spheres - halfway through the afternoon, his mum noticed that he had taken them off, and was about to sit down on top of them, so she yelled at the top of her voice "Simon, don't sit down, you'll squash your balls!" Needless to say, everyone in the vicinity fell about laughing. That little boy is now married, and in the British Army... how time flies.